The Word of Return
by Old Toad
Summary: The White Witch of Narnia blunders when she tries to become ruler of Middle Earth at a crucial time, and unwittingly helps two desperate hobbits on a quest. There are consequences for Narnia too.


Jadis the Witch, Queen of Queens, Tyrant of Charn, Ruler of Narnia, Adept in Magic, did not know contentment. The world of Narnia was a small place, too narrow and limited for such as she, who deserved broader realms to reign over and greater peoples to command. It was her right and she had the power. She had ruled the great city of Charn; she had seen the throngs of London, capital of a vast empire, and she sought such a world as these, one worthy of her rule.

She had crossed worlds from dying Charn to a nascent Narnia. What she had done once she could do again. She quickly found how one might _enter_ Narnia. She touched on other worlds, not leaving Narnia, and brought in creatures to her liking: hags, ogres and such like, who would support her in time of need but never challenge her authority. Leaving Narnia proved a challenge; she knew that on occasion men left the world of Narnia, but she never discovered how. Her studies were long, despite that she was crafty and her power and skill in Magic were great. She persisted and found a way all her own.

Eventually she had chosen her world and had devised a way to reach it. It was a desperate method and could be used but once. Though as bold and daring as ever, she had learnt the need for precautions and her preparations included a means of return, should her campaign fail. When all was ready she stood at midnight alone and un-witnessed within a pentagram drawn with her own blood, and declaimed the words of Magic. All was done in secret; she had told no one: if she had to return then none would know of her humiliation, if she succeeded and did not return then it was of no consequence. For all she cared the descendants of King Frank, who ruled tiny Archenland with despicable laxity, could take Narnia back.

Narnia was blighted by this Magic: the price for her travel was that by the following morning it had gone from high summer to mid-winter and all the land was thick with frost, the ponds, lakes and streams frozen over. Her frightened servants sought for their royal mistress, but there was no sign, even the pentagram had vanished.

The Queen found herself at once in the dark, standing on hard ground. There was no noise and she was alone. She stood poised and still, waiting for her senses to sharpen. At first she thought she was in a cave, for there were sheer rock walls around her, but then she realised that above her was sky, dark with cloud and smoke. She was high up in mountains, in a high pass like a narrow gorge. She could go up or down; she strode down and the path quickly led to a tunnel. She paused at the entrance and inhaled the air; it was foul with a dreadful stench and a palpable sense of menace. How different from peaceable Narnia, she was going to like this world! She would face the danger within if need be, but she was seeking men, and no living man would be found in such a place.

She retraced her steps and looking up saw a red light high above; she could just make out the shape of a high tower. It was a watch tower or fort guarding the pass, and it was manned. This was exactly what she needed: an isolated garrison she could rally to her cause, the first step in the conquest of this world. She advanced quietly up the path, alert for any challenge, but there was none. She found an entrance in the wall, an archway opening onto a courtyard. It was an ancient construction of well-laid stone such as was common in lost Charn. There was neither gate nor guard and she paused, fearing a trap. Then she felt the presence of the Two Watchers set in the stonework of the arch. This was a magic she knew well, and could easily turn; with a mere flick of her fingers the Two Watchers accepted her and allowed her to pass. Smiling, she boldly walked into the courtyard and looked around. Two small figures, lounging in a doorway sprang to their feet and stared at her silently. They wore armour, but were too small for ordinary soldiers, nor could such ugly faces belong to children of Men.

She broke the silence first: "Take me to your Captain, and look lively."

A bell clanged overhead, and there were shouted orders; in seconds she was surrounded, every weapon pointed at her. Good, whatever they were these were well-trained troops. Calmly she repeated her order. One standing further away shouted back. "Silence, elf woman, you are our prisoner."

They thought her an _Elf._ Then they must be goblins, big ones. Good, they would be immune to her beauty, but all too easily swayed by her voice. "We are no Elf, but Jadis, your Queen. Bow the knee to your Queen, soldiers, and escort me to your Captain."

No one moved. "Hands on your head, elf woman, and no elvish trickery or my men will run you through."

She concentrated on the sergeant, ignoring the threatening weapons around her. "Then I shall stand here, and the Captain shall come to me. Fetch him, he will want to see me." He weakened and spoke to someone behind him. She waited, stock still, poised and confident, ringed by spears with their gleaming points only inches from her.

Perhaps five minutes went by, perhaps longer. Someone in authority was observing her from a high window. Good, she had his attention. She remained like a statue, her face impassive. She tried to reach his mind: it was a man, not a goblin; he was young and clever and his thoughts were in turmoil. Then a decision was made; he leaned out of the window and called. "Corporal, your prisoner is to be kept alive; we have orders from the top. Show her up, and escort her closely. Madam, I am the Captain of this tower, you asked for me. If you do not wish for rough handling you will cooperate."

She was led into the room, towering above her goblin escort. The young Captain dared to sit in her presence, a crude table separating them. "You arrive here unannounced and apparently alone. You do not know the passwords and bring no tokens of authority. We are at war, why should I not regard you as an enemy prisoner? You are the spy we have been warned to expect."

"We are Jadis, Queen of Narnia. You are to take me as your Queen." This was directed at her escort as much as their Captain. Their weapons were held steady but their eyes darted uncertainly between their Captain and the Queen; she had the measure of them now.

"I am the Captain here, but I have my orders. Otherwise I should take it upon myself to interrogate you at length. We have persuasive means of cutting through to the truth." He unconsciously licked his lips at the thought. "As it is, I must hand you over to the kind hospitality of Lugbúrz." The soldiers did not laugh as he expected, but exchanged furtive glances with each other.

With sudden insight he leaned forward, elbows on the table "You are a witch, are you not!"

"Certainly."

"Prove it!"

She had prepared her example on the way up, concentrating on one particularly weak-minded and suggestible individual in the escort. "You! Jump out of that window, your Queen commands it!" The unfortunate goblin did not flinch; he dropped his spear, dodged around his fellows and silently dived headlong out of the unglazed window before anyone else could move. There were startled shouts from below. A goblin who had been at attention near the window looked out and bellowed an exchange with those below.

"Dead."

There was a long pause, the Witch Queen remaining calm and unflustered. The young Captain too seemed unruffled, and she could sense that he was absorbing this revelation of her powers and calmly weighing up his best course of action. "You are certainly no elf. Perhaps, like myself your forbears hail from lost Númenor?"

"I am of the royal house of Charn."

"You asked to see me, and here I am. What do you want with the Captain of the tower of Cirith Ungol?"

"I came here to rule this world. Acknowledge me as your sovereign or take me to your superiors."

"My allegiance is set, and your witch's guile will not so easily change it. I will deviate from my orders just so much: I will personally escort you to Barad-dûr. The Eye will know how to deal with you; you might even be of use in the war."

She nodded, in her supreme self-confidence believing that going so quickly to the real seat of power was her surest path to domination. "The Eye, that is the magician ruler of this world?"

"We do not talk of that. Ask no questions."

While rapid arrangements were made, the Queen condescended to eat and drink the modest provisions which the tower could place before her. She learnt something of the soldiery, and was careful to call them 'Orcs' It seemed that only the inferior breed skulking in the Misty Mountains were known as 'goblins.' She maintained her hauteur, yet shifted the allegiance of many Orc soldiers in her favour; had she asked them to rise against their Captain they would have done so. She did not do so, it was not necessary. She learnt that the young Captain, the only man at the tower, was ambitious and disliked his post in so remote and unimportant a garrison.

The Captain and the Lieutenant of the tower, a surly old Orc who resented his young superior, agreed that both would accompany her to Barad-dûr. She would ride on horseback and it would be unsaid as to whether they were guarding a captive or acting as honour guard to an ally. They would keep guard on her both to prevent her escape and to keep other bands of Orcs from taking her. They took every mount stabled in the tower, and the Orcs left behind watched resentfully as they set out. It was thought that those taking so rich a prize to Barad-dûr would receive great rewards.

So it was that both the Captain and the Lieutenant of the tower of Cirith Ungol, together with a score or so of their best-disciplined soldiers, were absent when a prisoner wearing a priceless Mithril coat was brought in soon after, with only captain of the guard Shagrat to maintain order.

Descending into Mordor, Queen Jadis contemplated the Mountain of Fire and the vast citadel of Barad-dûr beyond it, not with dismay but with excitement. This was indeed a world greater than she had hoped for! The barren, desolate plain of Gorgoroth she viewed with equanimity, seeing only the great armies camped therein. The Eye was focussed on the war in the west, and her presence as yet un-noticed. From horseback she let her attention dwell on the topmost tower of Barad-dûr and on the magician so feared by men and orcs. As witches and wizards do, she attempted to probe the mind of her adversary without revealing herself. She sensed vast potency and a ruthless will, but also fear, fear of defeat. But her skill failed her and she was made known to the master of Mordor; the Eye turned to find her and an adamantine will bore down on her, demanding her name and purposes. She fought off this mental assault, but it left her gasping. Here was a magician beyond the human, someone who seemingly exceeded her as the eagle exceeds the butterfly. And yet this immensely powerful being was in fear of his enemies. What a world she had entered! Her cause was without hope and without hesitation she spoke the Word of Return and vanished.

The young Captain, who saw her fade and disappear before his eyes, feared he had been tricked and rode back to the tower with all haste. Sam and Frodo had barely time to leave the road before they arrived back. A Nazgûl, sent by Barad-dûr to investigate the Witch, reached Cirith Ungol even sooner.

Jadis dropped, for she had been high on a horse when she used the Word of Return, but she landed on snow in Narnia and suffered only bruises. An elderly fox witnessed this indignity to the royal person and was summarily turned to stone. Her face, always pale, had turned white as the snow by her clash with Sauron, and remained so.

In the following months the winter weather did not abate and her once-compliant subjects became increasingly unruly. The forbidden name of Aslan was whispered, and an old tale regarding the four thrones at Cair Paravel was remembered. In response the Witch did nothing to end the perpetual winter, but took pleasure in letting it remain as a punishment to her subjects and a warning of her power. The use of her name was forbidden; she became referred to as 'the Queen' or 'the White Witch.' She instituted a secret police to enforce her will and ruled with increasing ferocity. If she must remain in Narnia then she would make her mark on it and relinquish power to no one. Her attempts to find another world to rule were abandoned

Queen Jadis never knew of the Ring of Power. Had she known of it, the very fate of Middle Earth might have changed. For who was better placed to take it from the hobbits? And with it on her finger she might have challenged Sauron before the very doors of Barad-dûr. All are agreed that this would have led to the utter downfall of the West, whichever of them triumphed.

Do not ask the Wise whether Sam and Frodo would have won through without the unwitting help of the Witch, for the Wise do not know, and in answer will only ask you this question: what if she had she entered Middle Earth a little later, when the ring was un-made, Sauron vanquished, and the great ones who had opposed him gone from the land? She would have raised great armies of Men and Orcs, and might they not have prevailed against the forces of King Elessar? "Fortunate Gondor" they say, "to have been spared such a conflict!"


End file.
